Buses and museums

Bus 51C heading downtown

How do you travel around a city with hundreds of buses but a limited website (http://www.rutasjalisco.gob.mx/)? A city where Google maps doesn't even offer public transportation directions? And, there's no printed bus schedules? You ask a lot of people for directions. At only 6 pesos per ride (~$0.50), the buses are an economical way to travel around Guadalajara. Plus, buses run frequently. So, I boldly walked up to the juice seller on the corner and asked if he knew which bus to take to downtown and where the stop was located. He directed me to another corner to wait for bus 51C. Bus 51C passed by within five minutes. The driver confirmed he was heading downtown; and, we were on our bumpy way. [Just a note, bus drivers do not provide change. Make sure to have exactly 6 pesos to pay.] We easily arrived at the Cathedral. It was reassuring, though, to follow along on Google Maps on my phone!

Fresh fruit with chili powder, salt and lime. Yum!

To celebrate the successful bus ride, I rewarded myself with a delicious fruit cup (15 pesos ~$1.25). In the cup were papaya, mango, watermelon, cantaloupe, jicama, orange and even cucumber. The vendor sprinkled chili powder and salt over the top before squeezing a lime over it all. What a great breakfast!

Guadalajara Cathedral

Next stop, the Cathedral. On one side is a small chapel with a faded painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe. At the chapel, here is a lot of information about the painting, including how there is a reflection of a face in the Virgin's eye. However, the only online information that I can find is for a similar painting in Mexico City: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Guadalupe. The Cathedral is still in use today. I walked in during the end of 12 noon mass. It's a beautiful building. Due to earthquakes over the past 300 years, the cathedral boasts a variety of different architectural styles from each repair.

Overlooking Plaza de la Constitucion, aka Plaza de Armas

Behind the Cathedral is the Museum of Sacred Art. While we weren't allowed to take photos inside the museum, we were allowed to take photos from the balcony overlooking Constitution Plaza. The paintings in the museum are all from artists that lived and/or were born in Mexico. Francisco de Leon was one such artist during the 17th century. Miguel Cabrera was a painter during the early 18th century. Two other 17th-18th century painters showcased here are Juan Correa and Jose de Ibarra. On the second floor, there is a special exhibition (April 1 - July 5) of the miracle paintings of Geronimo de Leon. All of these paintings revolve around The Lord of the Rays, a wooden statue of the crucifixion. They were painted from 1885-1915. For anyone interested in religious art, this museum is worth the 20 pesos entrance (~$1.75).

If you hadn't guessed, by now I was starving. This necessitated a stop for mini donuts. Donitas! Only 22 pesos. Telcel 3G isn't working quite as well as I had hoped. I also needed to regroup with WiFi and see what other museums I could visit downtown. A quick cappuccino at La Flor de Cordoba along the plaza was just the thing. Plus, it had air conditioning.

Next stop, the National Institute of Anthropology and History's Regional Museum in Guadalajara. The ticket says 46 pesos; but, the sign (and the charge) are actually 48 pesos (~$4). For only another 45 pesos, you're allowed to take photos in the museum. But, how could I not take a photo of this woolly mammoth skeleton? Unfortunately, maybe I should have paid for the photography rights, since there doesn't seem to be a website with photos. There is such a variety of exhibits here, from Tarascon culture to Tiro Tombs to the history of Guadalajara to the Wixarika people that follow their traditions still today. There is a special exhibit on the second floor, The Divine Proportion. It contains pieces by the contemporary Italian artists Franco Maria Ricci and Massimo Listri. Listri's photos of architecture are beautiful and sometimes haunting.

Mural of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla

One final stop on my self-guided tour today was the Government Palace. I'd seen the murals of Hidalgo by Jose Clemente Orozco on a previous visit. The second viewing was just as awe inspiring. There are two murals, one over the staircase leading from the ground floor to first floor. The second is inside the former Congress. My camera doesn't do either mural justice. The portion of the Government Palace that I hadn't seen before was the museum. It's small and free. There is a room for the original inhabitants of Mexico, another with information on colonial times and finally, a room dedicated to agave and tequila. (Where I managed to get in trouble for taking a photo with the flash on. It was worth it. Check out all that tequila!)

Tequila in the Agave Room in the Government Palace Museum